As the UK government reviews its bilateral and multilateral aid programmes and moves towards reshaping aid policy, there have been a couple of leaks and a bit of background noise. So what do they add up to and what do they tell us about how the wind blows? Continue reading
International development
The big beasts of development… – and peace
Under new leadership, the UK Department for International Development is emphasising results and accountability. And as part of that, the big multilateral beasts of development – to which the UK gives £3 billion a year – are coming under the efficiency microscope. It will be good to assess them not just for efficiency but for impact, and especially their impact on peace and conflict because it is the thing they have trouble taking into account. Continue reading
UK development aid: First major government speech
The UK Secretary of State for International development, Andrew Mitchell, gave his first major, setpiece speech in government on Thursday. The debate starts up again.
Water, conflict and peace
Water is a basic condition of life. We depend upon it for daily use, for agriculture, for industry and infrastructure. A shortage, an excess and deficient quality can all undermine welfare, impair human security, hold back economic development and in some circumstances generate conflict. The London-based Foreign Policy Centre has published Tackling the World Water Crisis, an edited collection of articles in which mine looks at the peace and security issues around water. Continue reading
After the UK election (2): Three questions on international development
What does the advent of the new government mean for UK policy on international development? Continue reading
After the UK election: international development and foreign policy
So the dust has settled, the first peacetime coalition in seven decades is in office and the work begins. What about UK international development policy under the new blue and yellow colours?
Ashed up: reflections in Baku
Well, like millions of others, the volcano has stranded me. Here in Baku for what was meant to be a flying visit, weighing the odds of waiting for Frankfurt to open (en route to London) or hoping there might be a place on a train and boat from Madrid (reachable via Istanbul), and just hoping for a fresh wind to blow (which is sort of ironic since Baku is the City of Winds), I am taking the opportunity to look around and glean some impressions. Continue reading
“Militarising aid” vs. “Running away from conflict”
The battle lines are starting to be drawn over how development assistance and peacebuilding do or don’t support each other, or can or can’t be made to work together, and about whether bad governance and insecurity are the right targets for international development policy and assistance. Continue reading
Haiti and beyond: preparing for the next disaster
One part of the tragedy in Haiti is how unprepared the country was to deal with the earthquake on 12 January. Yet the risk is well established. And Haiti is equally vulnerable to the equally visible risk of hurricanes. Haiti is not alone in this lack of readiness and the problems about getting help to the survivors make an urgent case for a new humanitarian business model that emphasises preparation instead of depending entirely on emergency aid flown in after the disaster hits. Continue reading
Copenhagen: time to re-think? Or just keep thinking!
As thousands of negotiators, activists, diplomats, scientists, politicians and journalists start pouring into Copenhagen for the climate summit – formally said, the 15th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – the question has been raised whether we should want them to succeed or fail. Which, of course, begs the next question: what is success at Copenhagen?
So is Copenhagen not the time to seal a new climate deal after all? Is it time for a re-think? My own view is that it’s best never to stop thinking, then you don’t have to make the effort to start up again. Continue reading
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